What do the Olympics do for host cities? We don’t know, says expert

The impact of Games on their host cities must be tracked to access the true cost and legacy, says real estate guru

Real estate expert Clive Pane has called on the International Olympic Association to develop a system for accessing the economic impact of the Olympics.

‘There’s no information about the economic impact of the other Olympics on their host cities,’ said Pane, head of planning & development at Deloitte Real Estate, during a panel discussion on the legacy of London 2012.

‘We need a post-Games monitoring system to hold future games to account. If we had that data, that would force the IOC (International Olympic Association) to actually do something about legacy,’ Pane added.

Speaking on the NLA Stage at London Stand at the MIPIM property fair, Pane also called for the ‘whole story’ to be told about the economic success of the London games. ‘Cumulatively, the park has created fifteen thousand new jobs, not including Westfield. These are real jobs, contracted jobs. The whole story needs to be told. We need to track it, so we can show where real success has occurred.’

Other speakers on the panel included John Barrow, senior principal of Populous, Angela Brady, President, RIBA, Sharon Marsh, global business development director, CH2M Hill, and Mark Reynolds, chief executive, MACE.

RIBA president Brady mentioned the importance of promoting small and medium sized practices’ contribution to the Olympics. ‘I think it’s so important that we don’t get tied down in the politics, our politicians must be supporting us.’

‘This is the biggest opportunity that British architects have ever had in their life,’ said Brady.

Marsh of delivery partner CH2ML commented on the London Games’ impressive health and safety record – with just 123 incidents and not a single fatality – a first in the history of the Games.

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